Kuwaiti mothers' perception of their preschool children's weight status

To examine the accuracy of mothers' perceptions of their children's weight status, factors associated with their perceptions, and their plans for controlling their children's weights.

Four hundred eighty-two overweight Kuwaiti preschool children and their mothers were selected from a sample of 2329 from the Kuwait Nutrition Surveillance System from September 2003 to June 2004. Heights and weights were measured for the children and their mothers to identify their weight status. Mothers were interviewed using a questionnaire to assess their perceptions and plans for their children's weights.

Mothers of overweight children (97%), male children (88.4%), and children without a family history of obesity (89%) showed significantly incorrect perception of their children's weight. Interestingly, the age of the child, the mother's education level, the mother's working status, and the mother's body mass index did not significantly contribute to correct perception of weight status. However, two-thirds of mothers had a plan to control their children's weight. The child's age, the body mass index of mother and child, the family history of obesity, and a correct perception of a child's weight by the mother were significantly associated with a plan for weight control.

A majority of Kuwaiti mothers were unable to correctly perceive their children's weight status, especially for their male, overweight children. Two-thirds of the mothers had a plan to control their weight if the children become obese. The child's age, the child and mother's body weight, and the mother's correct perception mainly affected the selection of the plan.